| Journalists fight AIDS
By DAVID MOLOMO, Yola
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
A Yola-based non-governmental organization, Media Vanguard
Against AIDS (MEVAA), has advocated baseline survey to ascertain the authenticity
of the decrease or prevalence of the Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS)
in Nigeria.
The organisation made the call against the backdrop of various
submissions made by government agencies and NGOs that the impact of the increased
sensitisation, enlightenment and education has drastically reduced the prevalence
of the disease.
The project manager of MEVAA, Mr.Solomon Kumangar, said though
empirical proofs are valid, there was need to embark on baseline survey to authenticate
whatever claims submitted by laymen and women.
While affirming that the
awareness campaign for HIV/AIDS has picked up in Nigeria, Kumangar observed that
the advocacy enlightenment and sensitization were mostly urban-based, instead
of extending same to the rural areas of the country.
He maintained that
a larger population of Nigerians reside in the rural areas and, therefore, questioned
the authenticity of the reduction in the prevalence of HIV/AIDS in Nigeria.
While he affirmed that there is a remarkable increase in the leadership commitment
and improvement in the political will to tackle the dreaded disease headlong,
MEVAA observed that the said advocacy and enlightenment were not rural based.
“Established
there is appreciable improvement on the part of government towards supporting
the fight against the dreaded disease that has claimed a great number of youths
in both rural and urban settlements, impact is low in our rural areas”,
he said.
The MEVAA project manager, who lauded the efforts so far made
by other non-governmental organizations across the country, charged such NGOs
to be humane, people-centred and show high level of commitment in the fight against
the dreaded disease that has defied medical cure.
“Only NGOs that have
passion for the vulnerable sections of the society, the youths in the rural areas
in our secondary schools, in small settlements that can continue without relenting
in fighting the dreaded disease”, he said.
According to him, a good
number of NGOs have initiated programmes, sensitized Nigerians and educated them
on issues of HIV/AIDS, but maintained that there was need to intensify efforts
on that direction.
Kumangar advocated more NGOs joining the fight against
the dreaded disease out of patriotism and love for youths who meet their untimely
death via HIV/AIDS.
Said he: “Knowledge about HIV/AIDS contract and
control should be intensified across Nigeria; especially in the rural areas. If
the urban settlers are scarcely informed about the dreaded disease, it is better
imagined the low level of sensitization and education in that direction.
“We anticipate a reduction in the prevalence of the disease as a result
of change in behaviour, attitude and practices that have put individuals at risk
everyday of our lives. There should be adequate enlightenment that HIV/AIDS is
not only contracted through sexual intercourse alone but through other practices
and people should be aware and avoid them”
While the advocates should
emphasize on the contract of HIV/AIDS in sexual relation, the rural populace should
be aware that unsterilised sharp objects, blood transfusion and the like are also
sources of contract, adding that the NGOs in the rural areas should show serious
concern and enelighten the people on their danger”.
He remarked
that the sum total of these will result in reducing the prevalence of the disease
in the rural areas.
He, however, re-emphasized that the baseline survey
would unravel the controversy about Nigerians who express the view that the survey
method and data process about HIV/AIDS are faulty and certain cases must have
gone unnoticed.
Appraising various channels employed by government to fight
the disease, the project manager rated Local Action Committee Against AIDS, (LACA)
low in view of lack of political and moral will at local government level.
The
local government chief executives he said, should borrow a leaf from the State
Action Committee on AIDS, (SACA) and domesticate the same “ideal”
and approach at the local council level.
While viewing the need for the local
councils to join the fight on the backdrop of their proximity to the rural populace,
Kumangar said they should also have it at the back of their minds that larger
percentage of Nigerians residing in the rural areas were yet to be enlightened
on the pandemic.
He, however, charged both the National Action Committee
on AIDS (NACA) and its state counterpart, state Action Committee On AIDS, SACA,
to look inward on how best to reach out to the governmental level.
While
Kumangar lauded the efforts of NACA and SACA in the fight against AIDS, the two
agencies at the national and state levels he said they should generate more ideas
and innovations in terms of advocacy, enlightenment and education of the rural
populace.
He stressed that ideas generated in the past gave birth to the
establishment of government agencies, like NACA and SACA, while NGOs soon joined
in the fight to complement government and international donor agencies in the
fight against the dreaded disease.
The project manager, who said MEVAA
was designed to enlist journalists, as foot soldiers in the anti HIV/AIDS campaign,
explained that with the financial support of SACA, the vanguard had conducted
workshop for 200 journalists on reporting HIV/AIDS issues in the media as well
as a workshop on reporting voluntary counseling and testing NGO.
Mr. Kumangar
also disclosed that the MEVAA had concluded plans to conduct a road show where
a mobile theatre drama and dance group will be enlisted to carry the message of
HIV/AIDS to five major towns and local government headquarters in Adamawa State.
“We have concluded arrangements to conduct a first ever media road show
which will involve drama and cultural performances in five major towns of Adamawa
State as part of the move to penetrate the rural areas with the message”,
he said. |
